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May 1 2018

Grand Jury Indicts Burlington Man on Five Charges of Possession of Child Pornography

By: Rich Hosford

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan’s office released information on grand jury indictments that were handed down between March 15 and April 17 and a Burlington man charged with possession of child pornography was included on the list.

According to the DA’s office, William Gates,41, of Burlington, was charged with possession of child pornography (5 counts). The Assistant District Attorney on the case is Radu Brestyan.

Gates was first charged on March 30 in Middlesex Superior Court after police were tipped off that a man in the Boston area had been on a website used for sharing such materials.

According to authorities, in November of 2017 Homeland Security Investigators in Boston received information from an Australian law enforcement agency that an unknown individual in the Boston-area may be engaged with a website known to law enforcement for sharing child pornography. Through their investigation authorities determined the identity of the person to be William Gates of Burlington.

During the investigation, multiple electronic devices were recovered from the defendant and his home in Burlington, police say. Over 1,000 images of child pornography were found during forensic examinations on five separate devices.

More disturbingly, Gates had previously been a leader of a Burlington Cub Scout pack.

A letter sent to parents of children in Pack 105 after his arrest in March said that Gates had resigned from leadership in the pack in December of 2017.

“Pack 105’s Executive Leadership members were copied on a letter dated December 15, 2017 addressed to William Gates from the Spirit of Adventure Council stating that he was not allowed to participate in any scouting events due to an ongoing investigation,” the letter states. “Our Executive Leaders spoke to our Council Leaders and were advised that these were only allegations therefore any communication within our Pack could have legal ramifications. In light of this, we took our own internal measures to address the safety of all of our children.”

Steps were also taken to ensure that Gates has no leadership access to the Cub Scout Advancement Program or to any of the pack’s social media sites.

“Due to the privacy and sensitivity of this allegation, we as a leadership team have taken all precautions to protect your children based on the information we were given,” the letter states “Pack 105 Leaders have all completed Youth Protection Training and actively practice the 2-deep leadership rule which specifically states that no adult is to be alone with any child other than your own. The safety and security of all of our children is our first priority.”

The charges against Gates are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. He has pled not guilty to the charges.